Big Miracle: The Anchorage Screening

This past weekend we were invited to the Anchorage screening of Big Miracle, a movie about some trapped whales off the northern coast of Alaska in 1988.  I was a senior in high school when this news story happened, and I remember it well.  Tim landed a small role in the movie as a Californian father whose family is riveted by the story. It was awesome to be able to go and see him on the Big Screen!

It actually is a pretty good movie! It was fun to see so many Alaskans (including Inupiats, the Eskimos from the North Slope) in the movie.  The movie is dramatic and funny at the same time.  The boys (Zach and Noah) weren't invited to the screening so more than likely we will be going again so that they get a chance to see it.  It opens this Friday (February 3rd).  If you want to see a little bit of what Alaska is like then by all means go.  But I have to be honest...the weather can be more brutal than what is portrayed in the movie.  For example, there is a scene where Drew Barrymore dives down into the water to look at the whales.  Some of her skin on her face is exposed as she dives....there is no way you could do that at those temperatures in real life!!

{A scene from the movie: Tim with his family}

{Tim's movie kids...they are a little more grown up now since the filming of the movie was about a year and a half ago.}

{Tim with the kids}

{Tim with the kids and their moms}

{Tim and I}

{The theater where the screening occurred}

{Noah in front of the Olive Garden}

The day after the screening we were able to go to  Olive Garden in Anchorage.  This is the first Olive Garden in the state of Alaska, and it just opened last week.  So the waiting time was unreal! We tried to go the night of the screening, but decided that waiting two hours for a table wasn't worth it.  The day we went for lunch people were lining up before it opened, standing out in 10 degrees in hopes of getting a table.  Luckily, it wasn't a long wait (maybe 5 to 10 minutes) before we were inside sitting at a table!